The caprese cake is one of the iconic sweets of Neapolitan pastry, originating from the island of Capri from which it takes its name. It has a base of almonds and dark chocolate that makes it moist, soft inside with a delicious crust on the outside. The recipe is very simple and is perfect for celiacs as it does not contain flour. It is excellent served at room temperature with a spoonful of chantilly cream.
There are some variations based on white chocolate and lemon or white chocolate and orange, but my favorite version is the pistachio caprese that I created 4 years ago, perfectly balanced in sugars and fats, it is an absolutely heavenly sweet!
The “legend” says that the original version was born from the mistake of Carmine di Fiore, a Capri chef, who forgot to add flour to the cake dough ordered by three American mobsters, who came to Capri on the orders of Al Capone. Thanks to this forgetfulness, he created a delicious sweet, soft inside with a delicious crunchy crust that the three mobsters liked so much that they asked for the recipe, and the caprese thus became famous overseas.
The chocolate caprese I propose today is by Salvatore De Riso, one of the most beloved and famous Neapolitan pastry chefs. His version uses a very small amount of starch and a few grams of yeast, ingredients that should not be present but that, in my opinion, make it absolutely special after having tried it several times.
Before proceeding, I leave you some chocolate sweets:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 8/10
- Cooking methods: Electric Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons
- Energy 356.65 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 26.42 (g) of which sugars 20.48 (g)
- Proteins 5.54 (g)
- Fat 25.54 (g) of which saturated 11.07 (g)of which unsaturated 6.74 (g)
- Fibers 3.09 (g)
- Sodium 98.18 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 80 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 6 oz butter (soft)
- 6 oz almond flour
- 6 oz powdered sugar
- 6 oz 50% dark chocolate
- 3 oz egg yolks (about 5 yolks)
- 5.3 oz egg whites (about 5 whites)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1.4 oz potato starch
- Half pod vanilla
- 0.07 oz salt
- 0.5 oz unsweetened cocoa powder
- 0.35 oz butter
- 0.35 oz sweetened cocoa powder
Tools
- 3 Bowls
- 1 Electric Whisk
- 1 Mold flared 9.4 inch for caprese cake
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Grater
Method
Cut the butter into 0.4 inch cubes and place it in a bowl, leaving it at room temperature for 15/20 minutes.
Grate the dark chocolate and set aside.
Mix the almond flour with the cocoa, baking powder, and potato starch on a sheet of baking paper. Add the grated chocolate.
Break the eggs and separate the whites from the yolks. Beat the egg whites with half of the sugar until they form soft peaks (they should not be too firm or they will be difficult to incorporate) and set the yolks aside.
Add the seeds of the vanilla pod and the remaining sugar to the soft butter, then beat it with an electric whisk. When well beaten, add the yolks one at a time until you obtain a homogeneous mixture.
Add the dry ingredients to the beaten butter and yolks, alternating with the softly beaten egg whites; mix gently with a spatula, from bottom to top, being careful not to deflate the mixture.
Transfer the batter to the greased and cocoa-powder floured cake pan.
Bake the cake in a preheated static oven at 338°F for about 45 minutes (the baking time is indicative, depending on the type of oven). Do the toothpick test to check if it’s done, but note that it is a fairly soft cake, the toothpick should come out clean but not dry.
The caprese cake is ready, let it cool slightly and turn it onto a plate. Allow to cool completely, dust with plenty of powdered sugar and serve.
Tips
Storage
The caprese cake keeps at room temperature for 3 days.
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